They are Human First (and they do dream)

Police in urban environments aren't always met with great pleasure, unless of course they are needed. As a matter of fact they are the target of so much aggression and in a way it is incomprehensible as to how. Still, I think I might know one or two reasons as to how particular states of minds develop as it concerns police officials.

I am going to admit it, I've not been fond of enforcement ever since I could remember. I saw how one or two officers reacted to defenseless individuals during demonstrations, or read about corrupt involvement that ultimately affected innocent people, or was outraged at how time after time officers were acquitted in the court of law after they've "murdered" the wrong person. Bit by bit I internalized these events and dwelled on them; used them to feed my dislike and outright disrespect towards officers. I came to a point where I actually convinced myself that we were on opposing teams, extremes really. I was in the helping business and they were in the destroying business.

During my undergraduate career as a Criminal Justice major, I learned about the boiling frog syndrome, blue curtain, the psychological detriments of being a cop and still I was not empathic because "they chose this profession, they knew what they were getting into and knew very well that they weren't going to be liked much. So if this were a conscious choice how is it that...(You fill in the blank).” I furthered my studies and it wasn’t until I met someone interested in policing that I started to minutely contemplate the idea of reframing my mind set…

That “minute” moment was a fleeing one really, but then the other day I saw a squad car parked on Broadway and I noticed myself changing my facial expression. I was slowly mutating from one very soft, even gleeful expression to a hardened one and I regurgitated a few wise words I had heard in the past by a very wise young man, “If their life was not set apart from the life of the rest how would they be respected?” 

Policing is an exceptionally difficult job. Its hardships are truly unimaginable and the emotional and psychological perturbation that can be a byproduct of the job is unforeseeable. It has come to a point that children are fed stories about policing; discriminatory and unjust mentalities are handed down as if they were great gifts. It’s so frustrating to me to hear a mother tell her son, “you need to behave or I will call the cops and they will come for you”. Why instill such thoughts, terror really, that will eventually foster distrust, frustration with, or even hatred towards these men and women? It is hard sometimes to think that we may be the major contributors to their desperation at times. It is hard to imagine that they too had dreams and that we have become part of the disintegration of those dreams, that we have become the problem, we are the enemies. Sadly enough it won’t be until we DO realize these things that circumstances will change. Food for thought. ;)